Florida Feds Indict Nigerian-American in $690K Fraud Case

 

In a plot that sounds like it was pulled straight from a white-collar crime series, a Nigerian-born U.S. citizen, Oladapo Olakekan Fadugba, is at the center of a federal storm in Florida facing serious charges for wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, and lying during his naturalization process.

The 40-year-old, now an indicted man, allegedly pulled off a $690,000 financial sleight of hand involving federal funds meant for veterans’ healthcare. According to the U.S. Attorney for the District of Florida, Gregory W. Kehoe, Fadugba rerouted hefty reimbursements intended for a large healthcare provider directly into his personal accounts using someone else’s identity to make it happen.

But the charges didn’t stop at money moves. The feds claim that during his naturalization process, Fadugba lied under oath, stating that he had never committed a crime for which he hadn’t been arrested. The irony? That very statement might now be his legal undoing.

If convicted on all counts, Fadugba could face up to 27 years in federal prison with prosecutors also seeking to reclaim $400,000 they say he profited from his schemes.

The criminal enterprise reportedly ran from October 2020 to July 2023, with Fadugba cutting himself checks and shuffling cash between multiple accounts linked to his name and businesses.

As federal agents from the Department of Veterans Affairs, Homeland Security, the U.S. Treasury, and the Secret Service pull back the curtain, Assistant U.S. Attorney Rachel Lasry is set to prosecute the case.

Meanwhile, it’s important to note that an indictment is not a conviction, Fadugba is still presumed innocent until proven otherwise. But with agencies this stacked and receipts allegedly in hand, he’s going to need more than a good story to walk free.